Springfield Armor's Brian Leggett back at the scene of greatest triumph

Mark M. MurrayScottie Reynolds, left, and Veron Goodridge flank Springfield Armor coach Dee Brown last week during team media day at the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Brian Leggett knows a little something about Springfield.

The Springfield Armor forward spent a wild week in the City of Homes in 2007, a week he likely will never forget.

In March 2007 Leggett and his teammates from Barton College won the NCAA Division II National Championship in spectacular fashion at the MassMutual Center.

“It’s crazy how things work out sometimes,” Leggett said. “It’s really funny how things worked out, getting the opportunity to come up here where there are so many memories.”

Barton overcame a poor start to the season and qualified for the tournament, reaching the Elite Eight.

In the quarterfinals Barton beat Grand Valley State in overtime, 83-81, on Anthony Atkinson’s 3-pointer at the buzzer. In the semifinals, Atkinson hit a free throw with one second remaining for an 80-79 win over Cal-State San Bernardino.

The title game saw the Bulldogs down seven with 45 seconds to play to top-ranked and undefeated Winona State, but Atkinson outscored Winona St. 10-1 in those 45 seconds, including a layup at the buzzer, to give Barton the 77-75 win.

“People to this day still ask me about the experience of it,” said Leggett, who was the starting center for Barton as a junior that season. “We look back on it and it was just a blur, but it was amazing largely in part to Anthony Atkinson.

“We went through a lot that season and you couldn’t have written it better for Hollywood,” he added. “It was just a real storybook season as far as being 5-4 at one point, then coming all the way back the entire season and winning three straight games in the Elite Eight on last-second shots. It was unbelievable.”

ROSTER CUTS: The Armor started with a training camp roster of 16, but cut that to 12 last Friday and whittled it down to the 10-man limit Tuesday.

Guards Brent Benson, Garrison Johnson and Garfield Blair and forward Michael Washington were the first four players cut following four days of practice.

Following Monday’s exhibition loss to Maine, guard Antoine Pearson and forward James Booyer were trimmed from the roster.

Springfield will open the season Friday at the Erie BayHawks on Friday and Saturday with a roster that includes guards JamesOn Curry, Scottie Reynolds, L.D. Williams, Jerry Smith and Tre Whitted; forwards Vernon Goodridge, Kyle Cuffie and Leggett; and centers Jamar Brown and Michael Williams.

SMITH SURPRISES: Dee Brown knew he was getting a hard-working, basketball-smart player in Jerry Smith, but he did not realize the guard’s shooting ability.

“I think the one surprise is Jerry Smith from Louisville, but he’s not really a surprise because he’s a (Rick) Pitino player, comes out of a good system, knows the definition of working hard and is a very good leader by instinct,” Brown said. “The one thing he can do that a lot of people don’t know is he can really shoot the basketball. He did get a chance to shoot the ball at Louisville because they had Terrence Williams and other guys and he was really the emotional leader and defensive stopper.

“But you talk about a kid who can really stroke it, he really shocked me,” Brown said. “I knew he could play defensively and had a great understanding of the game because of Pitino but the offensive side, that’s a part that surprised me.”

HOME OPENER: After opening the season on the road, the Armor will return to Springfield Nov. 26 for the home opener against the Maine Red Claws.

Tickets for the opener and all games can be purchased through the Armor website at www.armorhoops.com, or by calling the Springfield Armor at 746-3263 or through the MassMutual Center box office.